Grade: B | Genre: Comedy
Summary: No one is more surprised by the outcome of this rather witty little film than I. It has its share of problems, but this is light years away from the suck fest this was destined to be.

The rise and fall of Kevin Smith has been a swift and ugly thing to witness. I think the general sentiment was summed up best in a recent episode of Entourage when Vince discovers they've sloughed off directorial responsibilities of the Aquaman sequel to Kevin Smith after James Cameron bailed. The communal gasps of disappointment couldn't have been more telling. Smith was a man who entered with all the promise of indie Superman. Clerks had the grittiness of an El Mariachi with the savvy of Reservoir Dogs. It was lewd, crude and set its own rules that naturally come with a lack money and studio muscle forcing the film's evolution through focus groups. He would sputter out on Mall Rats, but fulfill all of his tremendous promise in the insta-classic Chasing Amy. Since then, one bad film has cascaded into the next -- Jersey Girl, Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, the brilliantly mis-executed Dogma. It's amazing that this man can still take meetings in Hollywood. So when I first heard the rumor that Smith was queuing up a sequel to his indie smash hit, I could only think that he was sucking out that last ounce of indie credibility before getting tossed on the heap of hack directors for hire. Believe me, no one is more surprised by the outcome of this rather witty little film than I. It has its share of problems, but this is light years away from the suck fest this was destined to be.